Pittsburgh category, Page 299
Downtown Pittsburgh winter homeless shelter reopens, but covid limits capacity to 68 people per night
Amid bouts of chilly wind, icy rain and temperatures dipping into the 30s, several dozen people showed up at the steps of Downtown Pittsburgh’s Smithfield United Church of Christ this past week in need of a warm place to sleep. An average of 25 to 35 people who are homeless...
Pittsburgh finance director leaving city government for position with PNC Bank
Pittsburgh’s finance director and treasurer will be leaving city government and moving to a new role at PNC Bank, Mayor Bill Peduto announced Friday. Douglas Anderson began working for the city in January 2008 as the deputy controller and chief of staff to City Controller Michael Lamb. Peduto appointed him...
Pittsburgh police investigating East Liberty shooting
Pittsburgh police are investigating after an East Liberty business was struck by gunfire Friday evening, officials said. Officers responded to a Shotspotter alert in the 6000 block of Penn Avenue around 5 p.m., said Pittsburgh Public Safety Spokesman Maurice Matthews. Matthews said a man was treated on scene after being...
Pittsburgh Public School students to learn online the Monday they return from Thanksgiving break
Pittsburgh Public School students will learn remotely Monday, Nov. 29 — the day after Thanksgiving break — as district officials grapple with staffing shortages they say related to the covid-19 pandemic. The change was announced in a letter written by interim Superintendent Wayne Walters. “The impact of the covid-19 pandemic...
Pittsburgh man pleads guilty to heroin distribution via South Side gang-linked drug ring
A Pittsburgh man caught throwing 17 bricks of heroin off the balcony of a Homestead hotel and making drug deals in the Penn Hills area has been convicted for his role in a drug ring linked to a local street gang. Henry Johnson, 30, of the city’s South Side neighborhood,...
Pittsburgh Creche is blessed in Downtown service
The Pittsburgh Creche has been blessed. At noon on Friday, Christian Leaders Fellowship, an ecumenical group of local bishops and denominational leaders, held a prayer service. It was the annual dedication of the nativity located in front of U.S. Steel Tower on Grant Street, Downtown. In its 23rd year, it...
Carrick man pleads guilty to dealing meth in cross-country drug trafficking case
A Pittsburgh man has pleaded guilty to dealing methamphetamine as part of a cross-country drug ring that was busted earlier this year, federal prosecutors said. Doug Austen, 40, of the city’s Carrick neighborhood, admitted in federal court this week to possessing and distributing large quantities of methamphetamine, Acting U.S. Attorney...
Dinosaurs will roam Pittsburgh when Jurassic Quest comes to townVideo
After millions of years, dinosaurs are again roaming North America in Jurassic Quest, an interactive dinosaur attraction coming to Pittsburgh in February. With more than 100 life-like dinosaur replicas, themed rides, live dinosaur shows, interactive science and art activities, a fossil dig, a “Triceratots” soft play area, inflatable attractions, photo...
Not in a pickle any longer, giant ornament returns to Pittsburgh
This pickle didn’t pop. After the ornament that the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership tried last year to install deflated, there’s a new one to take its place. Thought to be the world’s largest pickle ornament, it was unveiled on Thursday in Downtown Pittsburgh. It is located in EQT Plaza at 625...
Phipps Conservatory brings ‘Sparkle and Shine’ to winter flower show
Holiday decorations shine, sunlight on snow sparkles and Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens both sparkles and shines with the return of the winter flower show. “Sparkle and Shine” is the theme for the extravagant “Holiday Magic! Winter Flower Show and Light Garden,” running through Jan. 9 at the facility in...
Pittsburgh seeks volunteer ‘snow angels’ to shovel, salt driveways of seniors in need
Pittsburghers looking for a way to give back without digging into their wallets have a wintery option — shoveling snow and salting sidewalks for a neighbor in need as a volunteer “snow angel.” The city is seeking volunteers for its annual Snow Angels Program. Officials with the mayor’s office on...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Nov. 19-21
It’s Light Up Night weekend. There certainly will be plenty of holiday events happening in and around Pittsburgh. Enjoy. Light Up Night The 60th anniversary of Light Up Night is Saturday (yes, it moved from its traditional Friday night). Highlights of the Downtown event, which begins at 4 p.m., include...
Several dozen UPMC workers demand right to unionize in 1-day walkout against health giant
Medical scrubs emblazoned with pro-worker slogans blew in the chilly wind Thursday afternoon against the backdrop of Downtown Pittsburgh’s U.S. Steel Tower, home to the corporate offices of nonprofit health giant UPMC. Clipped to makeshift clotheslines tied to trees along Grant Street, the hospital uniform tops displayed hand-written messages such...
Lawsuit contends Peduto interfered with vote to remove Columbus statue in Pittsburgh
The organization suing Pittsburgh over the removal of the Columbus statue at Schenley Park has said in an amended lawsuit that Mayor Bill Peduto improperly influenced the art commission’s vote to take down the 13-foot tall bronze and granite statue. The Italian Sons and Daughters of America said in the...
4 students at Pittsburgh’s Brashear High School assaulted police officer, officials say
Four male students at Brashear High School in Pittsburgh’s Beechview neighborhood were detained Thursday after authorities said they assaulted a school police officer. The incident happened while the officer was trying to break up a fight, said Pittsburgh Public Schools spokeswoman Ebony Pugh. Medics were called to the school to...
Proposal would make it illegal for Pittsburgh employers to discriminate against domestic abuse victims
Employers in Pittsburgh would not be able to discriminate against employees because they have been victims of domestic abuse, under a proposal introduced to City Council this week. The measure, introduced by Councilwoman Erika Strassburger, would protect victims of domestic violence from employment and workplace discrimination. Some victims of domestic...
Greenfield Community Awards Dinner to recognize 91-year-old mask maker, other dedicated residents
They call her the “face mask lady.” When Jacqueline Stebler meets people in the grocery store, at doctor’s offices, the beauty shop, riding on the Access bus, and shopping at the fabric store and the wine and spirits stores, she reaches in her pocket and hands them a face mask....
Pittsburgh police warn of catalytic converter thefts in multiple areas
Pittsburgh police are warning the public about a recent string of catalytic converter thefts from vehicles. Police said four catalytic converters have been taken from vehicles over the past three weeks in the Friendship, Bloomfield and Garfield neighborhoods. Other similar thefts or attempted thefts have been reported throughout the city...
New name, high-tech tree debut at PPG Place skating rink
As skaters glide along the ice, they will encircle a 360-degree immersive tree that lights up and plays music. The 60-foot-high structure is decorated with more than 103,200 lights and thousands of ornaments. The tree has a sophisticated computer programming system. Friday is opening day for the newly-named UPMC Rink...
3 indicted in ‘grandparent scheme’ targeting Pa. seniors by posing as fake attorneys, bail bondsmen
A federal grand jury has indicted three out-of-state residents for targeting elderly Western Pennsylvanians in a so-called “grandparent scheme” that involved posing as attorneys and bail bondsmen to bilk their victims out of at least $250,000. Roderick Feurtado, 54, and Tarek Bouanane, 45, both of Las Vegas, and Roberto Gutierrez,...
Sheraden man charged with September shooting that injured toddler
A Pittsburgh man has been arrested in connection with September shooting that injured a toddler in the city’s Sheraden neighborhood. Derrick Brandon faces charges of reckless endangerment and endangering the welfare of a child after police say he was involved in a Sept. 26, 2021, shooting on Glasgow Street that...
Pittsburgh advances proposal to purchase North Side site for new public works facility
Pittsburgh City Council on Wednesday advanced a measure to move a Department of Public Works facility out of Riverview Park to a new site on the North Side, despite concerns that the proposed site is involved in ongoing litigation regarding a billboard. The proposal calls for moving the Department of...
Police: Law student from Pittsburgh killed by train in Vermont
ROYALTON, Vt. — A driver who died after being hit by an Amtrak train had crossed the tracks, backed into a driveway to turn around, and was attempting to cross back when he was hit, investigators in Vermont said Wednesday. The crash happened at about 11:30 a.m. Tuesday in the...
Carnegie Science Center unveils Gus & Yiayia’s cart in railroad display
With unseasonable temperatures climbing to 70 degrees, Wednesday was a perfect day for the unveiling of an ice ball cart. The Carnegie Science Center on Pittsburgh’s North Shore showcased its latest addition — Gus & Yiayia’s Ice Ball Cart — to be added to the Miniature Railroad & Village. The...
Pittsburgh pauses office dedicated to immigrants, refugees as mayor departs
Plans to create a new Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs in Pittsburgh were paused Wednesday, after a city council member objected to the idea when the current mayoral administration is in a lame duck period. The proposal, backed by outgoing Mayor Bill Peduto, calls for an office dedicated to...
